A local educator is a finalist for 2020 Ohio Teacher of the Year.

Tonya Thorbahn is an Intervention Specialist at Bigelow Hill Intermediate School in Findlay.

In July she was announced as the Teacher of the Year for State Board of Education District 1.

And now she has been named as one of four finalists for Ohio Teacher of the Year, which will be awarded in the fall.

Thorbahn has 12 years of experience in educating students with special needs in the third, fourth and fifth grade and is considered a leader amongst her peers, said Linda Haycock, the State Board’s District 1 representative.

“As an Intervention Specialist for grades 4-5 at Findlay Bigelow Hill Intermediate, Ms. Thorbahn has three guiding principles: first, to treat each student as she would treat her own children; second, to focus on what each student can do not what they can’t; and third, to engage each student so they can guide their own learning,” Haycock said.

A panel of education and community stakeholders will select the 2020 Ohio Teacher of the Year early this upcoming school year.

That educator will represent the state in the national Teacher of the Year competition.